London has been battered by 50mph winds that have felled trees and caused travel chaos. Powerful gusts swept across the capital as the Met Office issued a yellow "be aware" weather alert for most of the country.

Hugh Jackman has revealed he followed a 'brutal' diet to get into shape for his latest film, The Wolverine.

The X Man star, speaking at the film's premiere in London, said he asked wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne Johnson for advice before embarking on his physical transformation for the role.

The 44-year-old asked for tips on bulking up as he prepared to return to his Wolverine alter-ego after losing too much weight for his Oscar-nominated role of Jean Valjean in Tom Hooper's Les Miserables.

"I lost a lot of weight after Les Miserables and I asked him what to do, and he gave me his diet. Let me tell you, it was brutal - and I only did half of it," he admitted on the red carpet.

The Australian actor made his grand entrance in a sporty white Audi Spyder, accompanied by his wife Deborra-Lee Furness as he pulled up to the Empire cinema in Leicester Square.

Hundreds of fans waited up to 12 hours in the sweltering heat, with some coming from as far as Australia and Austria, to catch a glimpse of him.

Jackman - who also produced The Wolverine - admitted he got bruised and injured as he shot scenes on a bullet train but joked: "That was hairy. My wife wondered why I was home at 4pm that day. But there are a few things you don't ever tell your wife about - serious accidents and love scenes."

The Marvel comic book sequel, directed by James Mangold, sees the clawed hero in modern-day Japan where he faces his ultimate nemesis in a life-or-death battle. The film has been in the works since 2009, with Darren Aronofsky attached to direct at one point.

"I always love Wolverine. For me, this film is the definitive movie about him," Jackman continued. "Even if you haven't seen the previous film or the X-Men movies, this feels fresh and really different. I'm just grateful we could make it."

The film, which also stars Famke Janssen, Will Yun Lee, Rila Fukushima and Tao Okamoto, opens in cinemas on July 25.